The Governor Earl W. Snell Aircraft Crash Site is nominated to the National Register of Historic Placesunder Criterion A at the statewide level of significance. It is the site of the 1947 airplane crash that killedOregon Governor Earl W. Snell and his party, including the Secretary of State, Robert Farrell, and thePresident of the Oregon Senate, Marshall Cornett, as well as the pilot, Cliff Hogue. The crash debris isfrom a 1947-built Beechcraft Bonanza airplane, a plane that featured an all-aluminum airframe and body,a horizontal-opposed engine, and retractable landing gear. The site is located at an elevation ofapproximately 5,900 feet above sea level on the Fremont-Winema National Forest, in a remote ridge-toparea approximate ly two miles west-southwest of Dog Lake and a short distance from Forest ServiceRoad 4017-022. The crash debris that remains on-site is distributed within the 1947 impact area at aroughly 40-foot-by 20-foot oval area. The site retains a high level of integrity as remaining identifiableelements of the plane include much of the (now-flattened) fuselage, as well as the wings, engine cowling,and tail. The plane's remaining components retain their original metallic-silver exterior, with somesections still connected by stout riveting . Additionally, substantial areas of the original red-paint stripingand blue lettering are still present on the exterior of the fuselage and on the engine cowling.
